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HEALTH

Italy’s active coronavirus cases drop for first time

The Italian government on Monday reported its first symbolic drop in the number of people currently positive for the virus since the outbreak began.

Published: 20 April 2020 18:20 CEST
Italy's active coronavirus cases drop for first time
A man reads a newspaper by the Colosseum in Rome. Photo: Filippo Monteforte/AFP

There were 20 fewer active cases of coronavirus in Italy on Monday than there were on Sunday, according to the latest official figures from the Civil Protection department: 108,237 compared to 108,257.

“For the first time, we have seen a new positive development: the number of [people] currently positive has declined,” Civil Protection chief Angelo Borrelli told reporters.

Overall, however, the total number of confirmed cases continued to increase, though at a slower rate.

The number of “active cases” is not the same as confirmed cases. It is the total number of confirmed cases reported that day, minus the day's number of dead and recovered patients – a new, much lower figure, which the Italian government began using at the end of March.

READ ALSO: How Italy has changed the way it reports the daily coronavirus figures

That total number of confirmed cases rose by 2,256 between Sunday and Monday, making 181,228 cases reported since the outbreak began.

The daily increase in total cases continues to slow, falling by nearly 800 compared to the previous 24 hours. The number is now growing by less than 1.7 percent per day.

As the government deliberates whether the epidemic has slowed sufficiently to lift some of Italy's quarantine measures, some scientific experts have said that 'Phase Two' of the nationwide lockdown shouldn't begin until the daily increase in cases slows below 1 percent.

Another 454 deaths were reported on Monday, a slight increase from 433 in the 24 hours before. In total 24,114 people are now known to have died in Italy since contracting the coronavirus, though the true figure is likely higher.

Meanwhile 1,822 more people recovered in the past 24 hours, making a total of 48,877. 

Nearly 27,500 coronavirus patients are currently in hospital, including some 2,600 in intensive care. The number of people on both intensive and non-intensive wards continues to fall day by day (-62 and -127 respectively).

READ ALSO: Which Italian regions will be first to beat the coronavirus?


Photo: Alberto Pizzoli/AFP

Two Italian regions reported zero new cases on Monday: Basilicata in the south and Valle d'Aosta in the north-west. Umbria and Molise in central Italy recorded just one and two new cases respectively, while Calabria in the south-east had three.

In the worst-affected region of Lombardy, the daily increase in cases slowed from 855 to 735, while in Piedmont it dropped off from 593 to 292.

Italy's current near-total lockdown is due to expire on May 4th, though restrictions are expected to continue in some form for several more months.

The government has not yet announced which measures will be relaxed from May.

While some are calling for business to resume to mitigate the economic blow of Italy's lockdown, doctors are urging caution and a carefully staggered restart.

READ ALSO: 

Italy's coronavirus figures tend to show a decrease around weekends, when fewer tests are typically carried out.

Most Italian doctors believe the country's deaths and infections are far higher than those officially reported.

People who died at home or in care facilities for the elderly are not included, and some of the hardest-hit regions have only been testing those who appear the most visibly sick.

Member comments

  1. These are some really positive signs. Lombardy still has a long way to go but excellent news of the other regions

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BREXIT

‘In the dark’: Why Brits in Italy are still unable to prove rights to free healthcare

Despite UK and Italian authorities confirming that British residents covered by post-Brexit rules are entitled to healthcare in Italy, many still face "significant problems" in accessing it, the British government has said.

Published: 22 May 2024 13:38 CEST
Updated: 23 May 2024 11:57 CEST
'In the dark': Why Brits in Italy are still unable to prove rights to free healthcare

Cancer patients are among those in need of treatment but unable to access the Italian national health service amid confusion over post-Brexit rules, campaigners say, after clarifications from the UK and Italian governments have so far failed to resolve bureaucratic deadlocks at local authority level.

Since the end of the Brexit transition period in 2021, many British nationals resident in Italy covered by the Withdrawal Agreement (WA) have reported difficulties in proving their right to free healthcare under the Italian public system.

The problem was exacerbated this year after the Italian government in January hiked the minimum annual fee for ‘voluntary’ healthcare registration from €387 to €2,000, which many said they were unable to pay.

The British government in February stepped in to clarify that UK nationals covered by the WA should not be subject to charges for healthcare, and on its Living in Italy website it advised those affected to show their local health authority office (Azienda Sanitaria Locale, or ASL) an official note published by the Italian health ministry on February 15th which sets out their rights (find it here, in Italian.)

WA beneficiaries “can compulsorily enrol (iscrizione obbligatoria) with the Italian National Health System,” states the final section, pointing out that the deal, “in Article 23, provides for equal treatment with domestic nationals.”

But for some local health officials, even this written confirmation does not appear to be enough to clear up the confusion.

READ ALSO: ‘Life or death situation’: Brits facing high Italian healthcare costs amid rule change uncertainty

The UK government on Friday, May 17th, updated its guidance to say it had become aware that “some beneficiaries of the Withdrawal Agreement are facing significant problems accessing health services and renewing their healthcare cards,” despite its advice to show local health authorities the official note.

British nationals continue to report that local health authorities around Italy remain unwilling to issue them with a health card, while campaigners say the situation is further complicated for some by the fact that Italian authorities have also refused to issue proof of their permanent residency status, which entitles them to free healthcare.

This was the case for Graham Beresford, a British citizen living in Abruzzo who has been diagnosed with a rare cancer and remains unable to access the free healthcare he is entitled to, as he says local authorities don’t understand the post-Brexit rules.

Graham told The Local in April that the government’s clarifications on the issue had made little difference – his ASL continues to demand he pay the 2,000-euro charge.

READ ALSO: Can I get a refund after wrongly paying Italy’s €2,000 healthcare fee?

“Every time I go to my ASL office, I always feel like I’m dismissed,” Graham said. “I told the ASL worker I need medication for my cancer and she replied lots of people come in here with sob stories.

“There genuinely seems to be no compassion whatsoever.”

Graham’s story was reported in The Guardian on May 12th ahead of UK foreign secretary David Cameron’s first major meeting with European commission vice-president Maroš Šefčovič to discuss post-Brexit relations.

Campaigners also wrote to Cameron in April to appeal for help with the “desperate” situation faced by those unable to access care in Italy.

In its update to the Living in Italy website on Friday, the British government stated: “Since [the health ministry’s note] was published, and particularly in recent days and weeks, it has become clear to us that not all Italian authorities are consistently following this guidance.”

“We are urgently speaking to all relevant parts of the Italian government to clarify the situation so that we can give clear advice to those affected as soon as possible. 

“We also know that this problem is linked to the many difficulties some are experiencing with obtaining an attestazione di soggiorno permanente and/or the Carta di Soggiorno permanente. We are working to help with these issues too.

“We will update this page as soon as we have further news.”

READ ALSO: ‘We are desperate’: Why the UK must help Britons with Italian healthcare charges

Clarissa Killwick from Beyond Brexit, a group for UK citizens in Italy, said the situation “should never have been allowed to happen” and that there had been “a series of communication failures and inconsistencies.”

“We’re not far short of five months after the introduction of the €2,000 new minimum for voluntary contributions and there is still no clarity,” she added.

“There are fraught exchanges in public offices because people on both sides of the counter are in the dark or with conflicting information.

“People need information they can rely on, unequivocally. What do you say to someone who is waiting for an operation but has no idea what is going on?”

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